- Part one -
Kafar settlement
Since 1974, the expedition of the Karachay-Cherkess Scientific Research Institute has been conducting a systematic study of the medieval settlements of Karachay-Cherkessia. In 1985-1986. the expedition carried out exploration and excavations in Karachay-Cherkessia, in the Krasnodar and Stavropol territories. We have examined the sites of Karachaevsky, Malokarachaevsky, Zelenchuksky (KCAO), Shpakovsky (Stavropol Territory) and Novokubansky (Krasnodar Territory).
The purpose of the article is to summarize the preliminary results of the work and the earliest possible introduction of new historical and archaeological sources into scientific circulation. Kyafar settlement At the first stage of the work, the main forces of the expedition were concentrated on the Kyafar settlement in Karachay-Cherkessia. This was dictated by the lack of study and the intensity of the destruction of the monument. Since 1969, I have systematically visited this interesting archaeological complex and was surprised at the relatively good preservation of various objects on its territory. In general, as the results of many years of work have shown, in the mountainous part of the region there are still many well-preserved monuments. As an example, one can name the fortifications of the Amgatinsky, Klevtsovsky, Dzhalan-Kolsky settlements and the burial monuments of Indysh-Bashi, Dzhanukku and others. But better than anywhere elseUntil recently, various objects in the Kafar settlement have been preserved. However, its current state indicates that the monument is being intensively destroyed. Suffice it to say that earlier, many residential and utility buildings on the site lacked only the upper floor. The defensive structures and walls of buildings were especially well preserved. One of the main reasons for the destruction is that the territory of the settlement is completely overgrown with a beech forest. Densely located large trees and their roots are actively destroying outbuildings, because many of them grow inside and on the walls of buildings. As a result of these circumstances, it was decided in 1985 to primarily carry out work on this monument.that earlier, many residential and utility buildings on the site lacked only the upper floor. The defensive structures and walls of buildings were especially well preserved. One of the main reasons for the destruction is that the territory of the settlement is completely overgrown with a beech forest. Densely located large trees and their roots are actively destroying outbuildings, because many of them grow inside and on the walls of buildings. Due to the above circumstances, it was decided in 1985 to first of all carry out work on this monument.that earlier, many residential and utility buildings on the site lacked only the upper floor. The defensive structures and walls of buildings were especially well preserved. One of the main reasons for the destruction is that the territory of the settlement is completely overgrown with a beech forest. Densely located large trees and their roots are actively destroying outbuildings, because many of them grow inside and on the walls of buildings. Due to the above circumstances, it was decided in 1985 to first of all carry out work on this monument. Densely located large trees and their roots are actively destroying outbuildings, because many of them grow inside and on the walls of buildings. Due to the above circumstances, it was decided in 1985 to first of all carry out work on this monument. Densely located large trees and their roots are actively destroying outbuildings, because many of them grow inside and on the walls of buildings. As a result of these circumstances, it was decided in 1985 to primarily carry out work on this monument.
The monument is located 5 km. to the south of the village of Leso-Kyafar, Zelenchuksky district of the KCAO and consists of two parts - a settlement and a settlement. The length of the settlement is 1260 m, the maximum width is 200 m. The total area is more than 10 hectares. The village is located in the valley of the river. Kyafar is known in the literature under the name “Kyafar settlement”. The settlement occupies the top of a ridge stretching from north to south, and is known as the Spire Settlement. This is a single complex, so it would be more correct to call the whole complex Kyafar settlement.
On the territory and in the vicinity of the settlement there are several burial grounds, consisting of dolmen-like crypts, stone boxes and tombs studied by ED Felitsyn, V. A, Kuznetsov 4, VI Markovin. The settlement was discovered in 1952 by an expedition of the Pyatigorsk State Pedagogical Institute under the leadership of P. G. Akritas and was first surveyed by V. A. Kuznetsov in 1952 - 1953. But there is also earlier information about the monuments of the upper reaches of the river. Kafar. Thus, various monuments from there are mentioned on a map compiled no later than the 1840s. The ancient fortification on Kyafar is marked in his map by E. D. Felitsin. The anonymous author of a military collection published in 1860 also wrote about the monuments on Kyafar.carved in stone, and there is also a large building, the walls of which, according to the natives, are covered with inscriptions and painted with images of knights, animals, birds and fish. The ancient fortress is mentioned in his memoirs by a participant in the construction of the Nadezhdinsky fortification on the river. Kyafar D. V. Rakovich.
As noted, for the first time the monument was described in detail by V. A. Kuznetsov. However, he did not conduct excavations at the site. In 1985 and 1988. the expedition of the institute explored the serfs, residential, household and religious buildings. On two excavations with an area of 658 sq. m. multi-chamber buildings were studied, several pits were laid and a plan of the monument was removed. The monument, as it was noted, is a whole archaeological complex, consisting of three parts: a settlement, a settlement and burial grounds.
The settlement occupies the top of a ridge bounded from the south, west and east by impregnable cliffs. On the western, eastern and northern sides, it is limited by the currents of the Kyafar and Krivoy rivers. The village is located at the foot of the ridge in the valley of the river. Kafar. The burial grounds are located on the top of the mountain - the ridge to the south of it.
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As noted, the ridge, at the top of which the fortified part of the monument is located, is well protected by deep gullies and steep rock slopes. It gradually decreases to the north. Here (on the northern side), at the foot of the outlier mountain in the valley of the Kyafar River, there is a settlement overgrown with fruit trees and a beech forest. Due to the easy accessibility, the buildings of the settlement were completely dismantled. Only the foundations of various stone structures can be traced in the forest. The stones from the walls of the buildings of the settlement were taken apart at different times for the construction of residential buildings in the village of Storozheva. The path to the top of the outlier is located here. A path leads from the territory of the settlement to the settlement along a rather steep slope of the outlier. It is practically impossible to get into the settlement from other sides. Only from the north side you can get to the territory of the settlement. Therefore, it was reinforced from the north side with a double line of fortress walls. The first, or outer defensive wall, covers the settlement from the north side. It stretches from east to west and has an arched shape. Its total length is 430 m. And is built of torn stone - sandstone without mortar. The wall is poorly preserved, in places dismantled. But even in the best-preserved sections, the height of the walls still reaches 1.7 m, the width is 2.40 - 3.20 m. The exit was built closer to the western corner of the wall and reliably covered with wall protrusions and natural barriers. The best preserved is the second defensive wall, erected 300 meters south of the first wall. The total length of the wall from east to west is 135 m (Fig. 3). The width of the inner defensive wall in the remaining sections ranges from 1.40 to 2.70 m. In some places, it is preserved in height from 2 to 3 m.
The wall has inner and outer shells, and the space between them is covered with small stones. It was built of torn, rough sandstone. But it was selected very carefully and therefore the laying was carried out quite skillfully. At the bottom in many places; mainly used slabs of various sizes. It should be noted as a characteristic detail of the wall that there is a decrease (narrowing) of the width of the wall towards the top, that is, the wall is wider at the bottom. The second wall, like the first, was erected without a foundation. No leveling work was carried out prior to construction. The builders did not try to deepen the wall or create an extended, leveled bed for it, they laid the masonry directly along the relief. However, she is sooru wife quite solidly and skillfully,the best proof of this is its excellent preservation so far. The entrance was built in the central part of it and was firmly covered by protrusions on the wall, as well as natural barriers. It is especially reliably covered from the western side by a rock that serves as a bastion. In general, the defensive walls were built very skillfully and reliably covered the settlement from the northern side.
Stone for defensive and other structures was mined to the north of the settlement. Here, on the slope of the mountain, an ancient quarry is well preserved, where the stone necessary for construction work was mined. To the south of the second defensive wall is the main built-up area of the settlement. True, there are buildings between the first and second defensive walls. But most of them are located south of the second fortress wall. Here is the top of the ridge. Its entire summit is busy; buildings. They, apparently, represent the remains of residential and economic structures. Their walls are still so well preserved that individual rooms, entrances and other structural elements are visible. In many areas, streets, lanes, quarters are clearly traced. The buildings are all constructed of torn sandstone without mortar and are of various sizes. There are one-, two-,three- and four-room apartments. Some buildings have even more rooms. Buildings are usually stretched from north to south or from west to east.
The walls of the buildings have been preserved to a height of 1 - 1.5 m. Wall thickness is 0.50-0.80m. The entrance to the buildings was built from different sides. There are buildings with an entrance from the north, north-east, west side. The width of the entrance ranges from 0.50 to 0.80 m. Most of them are standard and amount to 0.70 m. Individual rooms in the buildings also have different sizes: 5 × 4; 5 × 5; 4.70 x 8.0; 6 × 3 m., Etc.
As it was said, the walls of the buildings are made of torn stone without mortar, dry. Many of them are very roughly built. But there are buildings that are very well built and monumental. Such buildings prevail in the central part of the settlement, closer to the southern part of the outlier. The most monumental is the 12-room building. This is the best-preserved complex on the site. In addition, it is distinguished by the fact that the stones are well selected and laid.
The length of the building is 23 m, width - 11.5 m., With a wall thickness of 0.7 to 1.2 m. The walls of the building have survived to a height of up to 1.5 m. The building has 5 entrances 0.70 m wide. Four of them are built on the Western wall, one on the northeast corner of the building. It was built carefully, the stones were selected and laid well, and, in general, the building is monumental in comparison with others. Apparently, the described building does not belong to an ordinary inhabitant of the settlement. It can be assumed that the building belonged to a representative of the feudal elite. In general, the place where this complex is located was very densely built up and the buildings are monumental. Here, apparently, were the dwellings of the ruling nobility.
In addition, not far from the described object are the remains of a building, judging by the surviving part, reminiscent of the remains of a Christian church. Consequently, this site was also the religious center of the settlement. The second building we examined is located 220 m south of the entrance to the second fortress wall. It is far from better preserved than the rest of the buildings. And this is not the largest and most monumental complex. It belongs to the ordinary buildings of the settlement. There are buildings on the site, as already mentioned, more monumental and well preserved. The described complex consists of five rooms. Four of them are related to each other. Moreover, three of them are stretched from east to west. The fourth room adjoins them from the south. The fifth room is not connected with the previous ones and is located to the east of room No. 4. The length of the building from east to west is 19.70 m,width (in the center of room No. 4) - 10.5 m. The walls of the building are laid out of rough torn stone without mortar, dry. The slabs have a wide variety of sizes: 1.20X0.6 m, 1.00X6.0 m, 0.80X0.60 m, 0.60X0.40 m, 0.40X0.40 m, 0.4 × 0.2 m. etc. In the lower part and in the corners, large slabs are usually used, the structure was built without a foundation. The lower stones of the building rest on a rock - the mainland. Its walls have been preserved in height from 0.35 to 1 m. The width is from 0.40 to 0.60 m. Room No. 1, located on the eastern side of the building, has dimensions (useful area in the center) - 4.60 × 3, 40 m. The entrance was built on the north-western corner. Its foundation was laid with processed stone slabs. The entrance width is 0.85 m. The slabs have a wide variety of sizes: 1.20X0.6 m, 1.00X6.0 m, 0.80X0.60 m, 0.60X0.40 m, 0.40X0.40 m, 0.4 × 0.2 m. etc. In the lower part and in the corners, large slabs are usually used, the structure was built without a foundation. The lower stones of the building rest on a rock - the mainland. Its walls have been preserved in height from 0.35 to 1 m. The width is from 0.40 to 0.60 m. Room No. 1, located on the eastern side of the building, has dimensions (useful area in the center) - 4.60 × 3, 40 m. The entrance was built on the north-western corner. Its foundation was laid with processed stone slabs. The entrance width is 0.85 m. The slabs have a wide variety of sizes: 1.20X0.6 m, 1.00X6.0 m, 0.80X0.60 m, 0.60X0.40 m, 0.40X0.40 m, 0.4 × 0.2 m. etc. In the lower part and in the corners, large slabs are usually used, the structure was built without a foundation. The lower stones of the building rest on a rock - the mainland. Its walls have been preserved in height from 0.35 to 1 m. The width is from 0.40 to 0.60 m. Room No. 1, located on the eastern side of the building, has dimensions (usable area in the center) - 4.60 × 3, 40 m. The entrance was built in the north-western corner. Its foundation was laid with processed stone slabs. The entrance width is 0.85 m. Its walls have been preserved in height from 0.35 to 1 m. The width is from 0.40 to 0.60 m. Room No. 1, located on the eastern side of the building, has dimensions (usable area in the center) - 4.60 × 3, 40 m. The entrance was built in the north-western corner. Its foundation was laid with processed stone slabs. The entrance width is 0.85 m. Its walls have been preserved in height from 0.35 to 1 m. The width is from 0.40 to 0.60 m. Room No. 1, located on the eastern side of the building, has dimensions (useful area in the center) - 4.60 × 3, 40 m. The entrance was built on the north-western corner. Its foundation was laid with processed stone slabs. The entrance width is 0.85 m.
The east wall of the room (it is also the east wall of the building) is curved, so its northeast corner is not rectangular. The second room is located to the west of room No. 1 and has dimensions 6.00 × 2.80 m., The entrance to this room was also built in the northwest corner, with dimensions of 0.82 m. Room No. 3 is located to the west of the room No. 2 and has dimensions (useful area in the center) - 6.30x3.50 m. The entrance to the room was built in the middle of the northern wall. The width of the entrance is 0.70 m. The base of the entrance is laid with treated stone slabs. Room No. 4 adjoins room No. 2 from the south and has dimensions (useful area in the center) - 5.60 × 2.30 m. The entrance to the room is from the east side. The width of the entrance is 0.48 m. Room No. 5 (or building No. 2) is located 3.7 m. East of room No. 4, and south of room No. 1. Its dimensions in the center are 3 × 2.4 m …The entrance to it is not traced. In conclusion, it should be noted that the floor of room no. 1 was laid with treated stone slabs. They lay at a depth of 1.43 to 1.70 m. Art. "O" of the frame. Room 5 is not connected to the other rooms, but there is no doubt that they all make up one estate. The northern part of room number 3 continues to the west and goes beyond the building. Perhaps there were some meetings here, but without excavations it is difficult to say anything concretely. It should be noted that during the clearing of the building, in the western part, a stone was found with the image of a Christian cross. There are no other finds. The northern part of room number 3 continues to the west and goes beyond the building. Perhaps there were some meetings here, but without excavations it is difficult to say anything concretely. It should be noted that during the clearing of the building, in the western part, a stone was found with the image of a Christian cross. There are no other finds. The northern part of room number 3 continues to the west and goes beyond the building. Perhaps there were some meetings here, but without excavations it is difficult to say anything concretely. It should be noted that during the clearing of the building, in the western part, a stone was found with the image of a Christian cross. There are no other finds.
One of the most interesting objects of the Kyafar settlement, in my opinion, is an outlier rock, located 35-40 m. West of the path and 320 m north-west of the above-described building. The remnant is stretched from the south to the north and has practically inaccessible steep edges. Its top is flat and widens to the south. Length from south to north (center) - 42 m. Maximum width (center) - 18-19 m. (16). A staircase carved into the rock leads to the top of the outlier. It is carved on the southern slope of the outlier and is well preserved. A total of 15 steps have been preserved. Their dimensions: length from 0.89 to 1.26 m, width - from 0.47 to 0.57 m, height - from 0.29 to 0.31 m. At the top of the remnant, there are remains of stone structures similar to those described above. But the latter have survived worse, and stone slabs are scattered throughout the area of the outlier. Such poor preservationin comparison with other buildings of the settlement, it is explained by the fact that they are located closer to the settlement, and the outlier rock is very popular among the inhabitants of the Leso-Kyafar farm and the Storozhevaya stanitsa. Residents of neighboring settlements often visit the rock. Children and adolescents are especially frequent here, who, at their leisure, throw stones from the high top of the cliff down into the valley of the Kafar River, taken from the walls of the above-mentioned buildings. On the westernmost edge of the cliff - the outlier lies a huge sandstone slab with a length of 3.60-3.70 m, maximum width - 2-2.20 m, height - 0.45-0.50 m. More precisely, the slab stands on four stones placed under it. To the south of it lies another slab - a cup stone, that is, closer to the western corner, the stone on top has a hole hollowed out by a person's hand. To the south of the cliff - the outlier is another cliff,resembling a mushroom or a pillar more than 10 m high. The latter is small in size, has completely steep walls and is located 4.7 m from the outlier.
Perhaps in ancient times there was some kind of connection between them. In general, a rock-outlier with steep walls, to the top of which leads a wide staircase, a huge slab with four legs and a slab with a round pit, the neighboring “rock-pillar”, a dizzying cliff with Kyafar bubbling below make a very strong, mysterious impression even on a modern visitor …
For me personally, these objects (together with perfectly preserved fortresses and residential buildings) evoke a strange, sometimes difficult to explain feeling with each new visit. A thin thread stretches into hoary antiquity, you are mentally transported to the Middle Ages, full of stormy events. You can mentally imagine what impact the object produced on the medieval population, all aspects of whose life were associated with religious beliefs. Perhaps there was some kind of cult center in this place, as V. A. Kuznetsov believes, but without excavations it is difficult to say anything more specifically about them.
Stationary excavations at this site and other parts of the settlement can provide archaeologists with very valuable and even unexpected material. Finally, it should be noted that 60 m north of the first defensive wall (from the entrance) on the eastern side of the path lies a sandstone slab with dimensions of 1.94 × 1.90 m. There are various signs on the surface of the slab. Unfortunately, they were poorly preserved. But most of them resemble a sign in the form of a cross.
During the work on the site, no dating finds were found. This makes it difficult to date the monument. It can only be noted that the nature of the laying of defensive walls and other buildings leaves no doubt that the monument belongs to the early Middle Ages. The burial grounds related to the settlement were specially investigated by V. A. Kuznetsov and V. I. Markovin. V. A. Kuznetsov summarizes the dates - VIII-XII centuries. AD 13, According to V. I. Markovin, the dolmen-like crypts of the settlement were built in the Bronze Age and were used by the medieval population in the XII-XIII centuries. as a burial place for the nobility. Since these burials belong to the population living on the site, it can also be roughly attributed to this time, not excluding the 13th century.
© Kh. Kh. Bidzhiev Research of medieval settlements of Karachay-Cherkessia and the steppe Ciscaucasia, 1985-1986.
The mystery of the royal tomb
Warriors and Christians
In the northeastern spurs of the Caucasian ridge, in the valley of the Bolshoi Zelenchuk river, in the 7th - 13th centuries, the capital and the spiritual center of the Alanian state (widely known in science as Nizhnearkhyz and Kyafar settlements) were located. Powerful defensive fortifications, majestic Christian temples, solid dwellings of the townspeople - all these treasures of Alan culture that have come down to us indicate that the residence of Alan rulers was located here, and it was here that archaeologists discovered a necropolis with dolmen-like tombs, apparently belonging to members of the ruling Alanian dynasty. One of these tombs, the so-called crypt from the Krivoy river, or the Kyafar tomb, stands out among the others not only in size, but also in unique relief images covering all its walls from the outside (Fig. 1, 2).
At different times, researchers have made repeated attempts to analyze these images meaningfully, which have led to different interpretations. Some came to the conclusion about the significant presence of Christian symbols in the figurative compositions of the relief of the tomb, and sometimes they even saw in them Old Testament or Gospel subjects. At the same time, some of the characters in these compositions appeared to be dressed in monastic headdresses with the bishop's vestments of the ministers of the Christian cult. Other researchers of reliefs, on the contrary, considered the presence of Christian clergy in them unconvincing, arguing that the reliefs were indicated by pre-Christian symbols. Others directly call the characters of the relief plots in wide robes - sacred female images, dressed in "unbelted shirts". In search of truth, we will try to look into those times and into the world in the space of which the tomb of the Alanian ruler was erected and saturated with spiritual meaning (7, p. 12). For this, we will conduct a short historical excursion.
Starting from the 4th century, the Byzantine Empire established close and systematic contacts with the active military-political force of the North Caucasus - the Alanian tribal union. Most likely, it was from this time that the Alanian aristocracy became closely acquainted, and possibly partially perceived Byzantine Christianity. Already in the VIII-IX centuries, a single socio-cultural community of Alans was formed, gradually taking shape in an early state structure, for the stabilization of which a strong centralized world religion was vital.
The date of official adoption of Christianity by Alania is considered to be the beginning of the 10th century. It was at this time that the Byzantine Patriarch Nikolai Mystic, in letters to the Archbishop of Alania Peter, asked special attention and "extreme caution" in the matter of Christianization to show "in relation to noble and powerful people", in relation to "ordinary people" he allowed "to be strict." In one of his letters to the archbishop, he noted: “You yourself understand that the transition from pagan life to the strictness of the Gospel is not easy” (Fig. 3, 4, 5).
By the middle of the 10th century, the Byzantine emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus called the king of Alania "the spiritual son of the emperor." Perhaps the emperor was the godfather of the king of Alania, the same as he was for the Kiev princess Olga, the wife of Prince Igor, the ruler of Russia (Constantine baptized the princess in 957) (Fig. 6, 7, 8, 9).
The opinions of contemporaries about medieval Alanya are curious. So, in the Arab chronicle of that time "Khudud-al-Alam" says: "The king of the Alans is a Christian. Among them are both Christians and idolaters. Part of the population is mountain dwellers, and part is inhabitants of the plain …”. The Georgian chronicle of the 11th century describes the Alans of that time as follows: “Alans are Christians. These are people worthy of respect. They love to be related and love their relatives, they know how to keep friendship, get to know the enemy. They love to maintain their neighborhood, they are hospitable, they know how to rule the country well, they are excellent warriors, they have excellent weapons, they are united in battle and help each other … they know how to build excellent towers, fortresses, castles, bridges, crossings, everything that is necessary in wars. They are excellent at building churches and making church utensils. The veneration of elders, especially old people, is exceptionally high in them …”(2, p. 85, 89) (Fig. 10, 11,12).
It is to the 10th century that V. I. Abaev erects the title of the Alanian ruler Cæzæron (Caesar, king), recorded by folk tradition for the surname Tsarazont, to which the Ossetian prince Soslan-David, who lived in the 12th century, was the husband and co-ruler of the Georgian queen Tamar. The title of the Alanian king, passed on to the entire royal family, speaks of the developed ideology of state power in medieval Alania. The clan (dynasty) of Tsarazont during the 10th - 15th centuries occupied a leading place in the social hierarchy of Alano-Ossetian society. During the Tatar-Mongol invasion in the late 30s of the XIII century, the Alanian feudal lords lost their main lands on the plain, but fortified their possessions in the mountains. Gradually, with the loss of statehood and its institutions, the memory of the family of Tsarazont passed into folk genealogical legends, linking many Ossetian surnames with it.
The Kyafar tomb considered by us is considered the last refuge of the Alanian king Durgulel (Dorgolel) the Great (second half of the 11th century), but this is not the only royal crypt that has survived to our time. In the Alagir gorge of Ossetia, in the village of Nuzal, there is the Nuzal church (Nuzaly arguan), the mausoleum of one of the last Alan rulers, the so-called Os-Bagatar (XIII-XIV centuries), which has preserved Christian fresco paintings on the walls inside the premises (Fig. 13, 14, 15).
From the time of the Kafar tomb to the time of the Nuzal mausoleum, Alania is under the vigilant attention of the Patriarch of Constantinople. The Alanian metropolis existed until the 16th century, however, far from the real space of its diocese, being recently in Sevastia (Asia Minor) (5, p. 149).
After our brief historical review, the Christianization of the Alan-Ossetians may seem clear and does not require additional argumentation. But it is not so. The question of the influence of the new religion, of its penetration into the deep layers of the national mentality of the Alan-Ossetians was raised repeatedly. Some researchers believe that the Alans adopted a Christianized version of their own ancient religion from Byzantium, while others see a complete immersion in the Christian faith. This question is complex, but important, since the orientation of national cultures towards one of the leading world religions is considered civilization today, the lack of orientation is national barbarism, even if over the last thousands of years of spiritual history. Religious change is one of the most painful moments in the history of any nation.
Our time is distinguished in this respect by such blinding that it is difficult to find an equal. It is stereotypically believed that it is enough to recognize some confessional formula as incorrect and incorrect in order to finally psychologically free oneself from all the influences of its spiritual tradition. Our time naively believes in intellectual enlightenment as the only force necessary for human well-being, believes that the intellectual environment can somehow have a deeper impact on mental processes or even on the unconscious of a person than the spiritual environment! At the same time, they completely forget that the religion of the past two millennia is a deep psychological attitude, a special kind of adaptation to the inner and outer world, creating a certain form of culture and, thereby, a certain atmosphere,which external intellectual denial does not have any influence (15, p. 234).
These reform processes did not arise today, but today they continue their destructive work, dividing the world into "ours" and "alien", into barbaric, wild and civilized, cultural. At the same time, ideological attitudes, which on the other hand, form their own "cultural", "true" person, and both, in the end, turn out to be closed, inaccessible, inaccessible for interpenetration, perception of other cultural meanings, human values. All these processes are associated with ideological priorities and stereotypes of the choice of the ruling elite of society, and have nothing to do with understanding the meaning laid down for millennia in national spirituality.
One thing is indisputable: medieval Alania entered the space of a new culture, preserving the originality of the previous one, but the further spiritual process that brought Alania to the home of European peoples was prevented by the tragic events of the history of the 13th - 15th centuries. At the same time, one should not think that the transition to the new faith was peculiar only among the Alan-Ossetians. The processes of Christianization were difficult for most of the peoples of Europe (as well as Islamization in Asia), sometimes dragging on for hundreds of years of sublimated existence, when the national mentality was not in paganism or in Christianity.
The perception of a new spiritual teaching, a new God, by the military-feudal elite of Alan society, was probably facilitated by the presence in the common North Iranian spiritual culture of the uniform God-father and Goddess-mother, which coincided with the Byzantine veneration of the image of Christ and the Mother of God. At the same time, the Christian God, together with his apostles, could also be perceived as a divine leader with a co-religionist squad, which reproduced in him the functions of the ancient military deity of the Alans. In this regard, one recalls the words of the Italian historian Franco Cardini: “Christ is the same leader, father, brother, distributing awards after the battle - to each according to his merits, sitting on the throne in the magnificent banquet hall” (4, p. 183).
Understanding the specificity of the Christianization of the Alan-pagans, the Byzantine missionaries, preserving the pagan spiritual values, covered them with a new Christianized guise. The tremendous spiritual experience associated with the values of the pre-Christian religion could not be discarded as it never existed. Therefore, gradually the terms of Christianity come into equilibrium with the spiritual and moral norms of the military-squad worldview of the Alans. Trust and loyalty, love for one's neighbor (comrade in arms) are very valuable qualities in a military society. The cross becomes a symbol of military victory, without ceasing to be an ancient symbol of the World Tree, the Tree of Life. The Alanian warrior took an oath and an oath on a sword stuck into the ground, now he swears on a sword and the Gospel.
In 866, Pope Nicholas I, answering the questions of the Bulgarians who had recently converted to Christianity, advised to turn the ancient sacred feasts into Christian holidays. Plots from pagan mythology were widely used to decorate Christian architectural monuments of the early Middle Ages. So, episodes from the life of the hero of the Old Scandinavian epic Sigurd are depicted on the cross in the church of St. Andrew on the Norwegian Isle of Man (there are similar scenes of the Alano-Ossetian epic on the Elkhotovo cross). The epic hero Sigurd is also depicted on the portal of the 12th century church, where he kills the dragon Fafnir, perhaps by analogy with the Christian St. George and St. Michael (4, p. 192) (Fig. 16, 17).
The old spiritual tradition, perceiving new religious symbolism, filled it with the old sacred content. This constant struggle between old and new, between form and content, did not stop until the twentieth century. In the nineties of the twentieth century in Central Russia, a group of ethnographers recorded as a film document the rite of burial of the ancient Slavic female pagan deity of fertility - Kostroma. Moreover, a character representing an Orthodox priest and the mask of a pagan priest, the Magus, were present at the ritual funeral service.
We again find an objective view of the era of medieval Christianity in Franco Cardini, but not among the Alans, but among the Germans, whose social structure was identical to that of the Alanian, and the spiritual represented the archetypal religious world. The Germans were reluctant to part with their ancient traditions, if only because they were deeply connected with the structure of their society. At the same time, they also perceived new cults and rituals. True, they interpreted them in a purely magical way, adding to the previous beliefs, which they kept faithful to (4, p. 196).
But here there were also worldly benefits, because Christianity sanctioned the sacredness of royal power. Christ - Lord and King - becomes the measure of the sovereign's authority. Accordingly, the king is a "cast" of Christ. But this is all in the everyday world, and when it came to the afterlife, the leaders and kings gave preference to the ancient gods of their ancestors. For example, Rollon, the leader of the Vikings, who was baptized and became the Duke of the Normans, being on his deathbed, of course, cherished the hope of getting into a Christian Paradise, but at the same time he did not forget about the ancient Valhalla - the land of dead warriors. In the spirit of Solomon's wisdom and Norman practicality, he donated one hundred golden livres to Christian priests and at the same time sacrificed one hundred prisoners of war to the ancient gods. Another example is taken by us from the times of the French king Charlemagne. One hundred and fifty years after the adoption of Christianity, Franks Catholics still worship their old gods, bringing them human sacrifices.
Worst of all, the old spiritual tradition leaves the mythopoetic heritage, in which the hero of the epic is called upon to perform a world-ordering feat, protecting the ancient cosmos, even if the divine characters of the new religion encroach on him. This is how the Nart Batraz behaves, at war with the hosts of Christian saints and yet yielding to them, perishing at the behest of God. From St. John (wheels of Oynon, Balsag) is killed in the Nart epic of Ossetians and the archaic solar hero Soslan. The ancient God of the Alanian warriors merges in his functions of a protector and a just judge with St. George, becoming Uastyrdzhi - a Christianized male deity of the new Alano-Ossetian pantheon (Fig. 18).
Based on the above, we see that during that short period of time separating the construction of the Kafar tomb (11th century) from the official adoption of Christianity by the Alans (10th century), it was impossible to destroy the thousand-year spiritual system, the basis of the worldview of the ancient people. The new Christian symbolism could only be associatively (secondarily) reproduced in the same semantic nodes of the ancient Iranian spiritual tradition, without violating its old sacred content. Therefore, the suggestion that the sacred text of the burial relief of the Kyafar tomb may include the image of a Christian priest, a bearer of new spiritual values, could probably have been perceived by ancient people as sacrilege. Of course, today it is difficult for us to find answers to all the questions presented in relief compositions,but the reader who is interested and familiar with our previous research immediately recognizes in many plots of the relief an ancient ideological idea, and in it the sacred scene of the soul's journey to the last abode, to the Mother Goddess.
© Valery Tsagaraev ("Art and Time". Vladikavkaz, publishing house "Ir", 2003)
- Part one -